St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1887-08-25
A ROMANCE IN REAL LIFE.
Knorrsu. Tenn Daily sens,ns..

gether, and have reared an interesting
family, the eldest son now being a
young man nearly grown. The story
of the first meeting of this worthy
couple, nearly 30 years ago, and their
subsequent marriage, has in it more of
romance than many a creation of the
imagination and is so full of interest
that we cannot resist the temptation
to give it to our readers, although we
have been requested by the gentleman
not to do so.
In the winter of 1890, Lake Cham
plain was frozen sOlidly almost the en-
tire winter, and the young people IN
reach of its shores enjoyed the health
full and exciting pleasure of skating to
the fullest extent. Along towards
spring a thaw came and the surface of
the ice was somewhat sOftened by the
rays of the sun. This was followed
by long, hard rain which covered the
surface of the lake with clear, pure
water. All hope of any more skating
on the lake that winter had gone,
when suddenly the weather changed
again, the skies cleared and in one
cold, still night the water standing on
the ice was frozen as hard as adamant,
and the surface of the ice which before
was somewhat rough and uneven was
then perfectly smooth and again the
skaters were skimming over the level
surface of the ice-cOvered lake.
For several days the cold weather
continued, and one evening, the last
on which the steel runners of the skates
were heard ringing on the ice of Lake
Champlain that. winter, two young
men, Just turned into the twenties, one
a native of New York who was on the
Vermont side in the employ of the
Champlain Navigation company, and
the other Vermont hey whose home
was near, went out on the Shelburne
point with their skates, and were soon
gliding about on Shelburne bay. Near
ing the end of the point where it was
low and narrow, they could see on the
other side, skating on the main body
of the lake, four young ladies, with
three of whom they were acquainted.
Taking off their skates, the young men
ran across the point and Joined the
girls, and soon the merry laughter of
the young people was ringing over the
frozen lake as they merrily skinned
along the smooth surface of the ice.
The young lady unknown to the boys
was a beautiful East Tennessee girl g,
visiting two of her schoolmates in Yer
mont.
In the distance toward the north,
Rock Dunder cOnld be seen, a black
column rising up from the glittering
ice mantle of the lake and after sew
eral minutes of skating near the point,
one of the young ladies proposed that
they all take a race out to the rock.
The other girls seconded the 'sugges
ton, and in a trice they were skim
ming away toward the rock. When
this was reached, still further away
could be seen Juniper island, which
was just three miles from Shelburne
point, the place from which the party
started. The merry young people
sOOu concluded to sgO on the island,
and in a few minutes they were all
gliding slowly around the island, when
the young New Yorker stopped sud-
denly with a quick, sharp cry, and
pointed to a dense, dark fog rolling
swiftly down from the north. They
all knew what that meant for any one
caught out on the ice in the fog, and
turning quickly they dashed away in a
desperate race with the darkness that
before they got fairly away from the
gathering about them, and they knew
point before they should be wrapped
in almost impenetrable darkness.
Stopping for a moment, the plan Of
action was determined. The New
York boy was to lead with one of the
l.. ell al IL L.
the marks made by the skates as the
party went out one of the Vermont
ladies, the older one, was to follow
him, and the young VermOnter was to
assist the other two girls who could
not skate so we'll. Just as the black
ness of the fog swept down upon them
they started again in the arranged or
der. Almost in an instant the light of
the sun had been shut out and all the
frozen lake was wrapped in shrOud
of darkness. The young people spoke
not a word, nothing could be seen and
the fearful silence was broken only by
the ring of the flying skates on the ice.
The young man who had charge of the
two girls assisted them all that he
could and closely followed the young
lady in front of him. No one knew
how time passed nor how long they
went without speaking nor how far;
but finally, believing that they had
gone more than twice the distance
from the island to the point, the young
man behind called to the lady he fol-
lowed and asked her if she could see
the land. She answered that she could
not, and then the young man told her
to call to the leader and stop him for a
second consultation. The girl answer
ed that she had entirely lost sight of
the leader, and did not know whether
or not they were following him, but
had all the time thought they were.
Greatly alarmed the young man ad-
and examining the ice found
it perfectly smooth, with no marks of
steel upon it. He then, still with the
two girls held by their belts before
him, took the lead, instructing the
young lady, who had before been in
advance, to follow him closely.
Again they started, and again for
they sped swiftly along in
silence. Finally the girls began to be
and one of them asked the
young man if they were not lost. He
told her that they were, but that he
hoped soon to reach the shore at some
point, even if they could not get back
to the place from which they started.
Then the lady who had led the others
out of the right direction, sank sob
bling upon the ice and declared that
she could go no further. The COM
paniOn of the girls encouraged her all
he could, and the brave East Tennes-
see girl voluntarily relinquished her
place at the young mans side, and the
almost fainting lady who had been
skating alone, then had the assistance
Of supporting arm.
They started once more, and after